


Prodigy.

by fxlminare



Category: Divergent (Movies)
Genre: Dauntless Faction, Dauntless Faction Initiation, Divergent, Divergent Timelines, F/M, Reader-Insert, fears, four fears, mindspace, tobias four - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:29:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27682906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fxlminare/pseuds/fxlminare
Summary: "in which four takes reader to his mind space"
Relationships: Four | Tobias Eaton/Reader
Kudos: 7





	Prodigy.

You knew they were going to catch you, the realization hit you like a truck; you hadn't anticipated having to deal with this type of training and trials in Dauntless, you thought you'd choose and just... be there. And yet, there you were, walking around the hallways, knowing Four had caught up, wondering when it'd happen, being on your feet all the time, even at night, being woken up by the slightest disrupting noise around you. But he didn't hand you in, going back into your last round of practice before the trial the next morning, hoping you could just slow it down but knowing you had failed as Four looked at you, leaning back on the wall beside you like he had been waiting.

\- "You are too fast for Dauntless."

\- "I'm too fast for everyone." -you sighed, pulling on the cables on your temples- "Why am I still here?"

\- "Why do you think?"

\- "Because you'd rather expose me in front of everyone?"

You looked up at him; he was always so... stoic, like he had just one emotion and that emotion was indifference; he was too hard to read to even bother. You wondered if, under all that unexpressive façade, he'd have a liking for watching people suffer, otherwise why would he remain on this job when he could easily ascend through the ranks? Why would he wait until tomorrow? Maybe he also wanted to get recognition for catching you. Either way, you were done, so there's was no point staying behind to pretend like you had managed to slow down your time, raising from your place and aiming at the door when he stopped you, pulling you back.

\- "What now?"

\- "I'm going to show you something."

\- "Oh, great." -you rolled your eyes, tilting your head- "My last prize before being killed?"

\- "I'm not going to let them kill you."

\- "You... what?"

Your eyes widened and your eyebrows furrowed a second later in confusion; it had to be a trap, there was no way around it and no other explanation. Why would Four say something like that? You stood there like your shoes had been glued to the floor as he moved around the room, wondering what the hell was going to happen to you now, watching as he moved his chair next to the one you had just been sat on, moving a bunch of cables around and you wondered how bad it'd be if you made a run for it. But something made you stay, maybe it was curiosity, maybe it was that your shoes were actually glued on the spot.

\- "Come on."

\- "What are we doing?"

\- "I'm taking you to my mind space." -his nonchalant tone made you let out something between a chuckle and a scoff- "Show you how Dauntless does it."

\- "And you're helping me... because?"

\- "We are not so different."

He was definitively joking now. Yeah, you should've made a run for it. But you sat down anyway, following his movements as he put the cables on him and then on you, injecting you with the liquid that knocked you out and then himself, taking a deep breath and letting go, knowing there wasn't anything for you to lose here.

Opening your eyes again, you realized you weren't on the ground even before your pupils adjusted to the light, feeling the wind on your face, looking around, recognizing the place and moving your hands to hold onto the narrow scaffold, looking then in front of you, seeing Four looking like he was going pale and you couldn't help but chuckle.

\- "That's why you did not go all the way up in the tower the other day." -you nodded more to yourself than him, standing up- "Heights."

\- "Well, we're all afraid of something."

\- "You do realize you could just... jump, right?"

\- "That's what Divergent does, think like Dauntless."

\- "I'd still jump."

\- "And that'll kill you."

You sighed, knowing he was right, looking around you wondering exactly what he expected you to do but he simply motioned you to follow him so you did, walking slowly over then thin metal till you got to the building on the other side. I couldn't be that easy. But that really seemed to be it, following him down the stairs, thinking you'd get to the outside but being trapped in an empty room.

\- "Okay, weird."

\- "Yeah, wait."

\- "For....?"

Before you could say another word, you heard something click around you and every single wall started to slowly move closer towards you. Your eyes widened; the last thing you wanted to do was experience how being crushed to death felt like.

\- "So... what do you do now?"

\- "I stop the walls from moving."

\- "You don't say."

\- "It's my mind space, I know what I have to do."

\- "Okay but that doesn't mean I can't help, does it?"

\- "You want to help?" -he was visibly uncomfortable but not with me, with the situation, looking around as the moving walls around us- "Okay, get us out of here."

\- "What happens if I don't."

\- "Just do it."

That was not the reassurance you were looking for but, then again, when had Four been anywhere near an inspiring trainer? You couldn't think of any examples as you looked around the place, hearing Four's breathing quickening. It wasn't real so why was he making such a big deal out of it.

\- "Take your time."

\- "Oh, shut up."

You moved your hand in front of him to shush him as you eyes settled on something in front of you, smiling to yourself, picking up the screws and using them to force the walls to come to a stop, wondering if that was what Four would do, not that there were many other options. You pursed your lips as you forced the last screw in place, staying still and looking at Four who seemed visibly more relaxed, turning your head back again to look at the wall you had been pushing back on only to find out it was gone.

\- "Okay." -you stepped outside into the new room- "Do you always have the same number of screws?"

\- "What?"

\- "You know, or does your fear change sceneries?"

\- "Why don't you just focus on learning how not to give yourself away."

\- "I can do two things at the same time, FYI." -you looked around you, finding yourself in a room full of mirrors- "Okay, weird, is your reflection your third... wait, what?"

You would have sworn there was nothing in the room, and yet, there she was, a girl from your class, tied to a chair and a gun on a pedestal now next to Four. You took a step back but then your instincts came rushing back and you attempted to go free her, but Four stopped you, holding you back next to him.

\- "We have to free her, right?"

\- "No." -he grabbed the gun- "I have to kill her."

\- "Your third fear is killing people?"

\- "Murdering an innocent."

You blinked once and the girl was gone, blinked again and it was you. Four saw you as an innocent. You eyed him as he rose the gun. It was... morbid, seeing yourself like that, hearing the gunshot and your blood on the floor but Four had turned his face to the side.

\- "I can't do it if I look at them. No matter how many times I do it."

\- "I'm sorry."

\- "For?"

\- "It can't be easy, letting someone inside your head like this."

\- "I wanna help you."

\- "But why?"

\- "I've told you," -he left the gun back on its place and walked towards a door that had appeared out of nowhere- "we are more alike than you think."

\- "Okay, Four and his cryptic statements. If the test put us through things that annoy us, that'd be my first one."

Four chuckled, looking back at you before he entered the new room, walking next to him, feeling him go stiff as you looked around; it was familiar, for some reason. You knew you had never been in that room, but you had seen similar ones. It was a basement.

\- "We're in Abnegation." -the stairs next to you cracked as someone came down, Four pulling you behind him- "Four?"

He didn't say anything but as soon as the figure stepped in front of you into the dim light that came through the window, you understood. Four. Tobias. So it was all true, the rumors, the fear, the scandal... all true. You wanted to help, you really did, looking around you, trying to find something as you watched the man was suddenly not alone, three more men alike circled you and you couldn't help but hold onto Four but not because you were scared for yourself but because you understood his fear and you were angry. You knew Four wanted to do it himself but you were decided to help so you patted yourself, a gun appearing in your pocket so you handed it to him.

You opened your eyes again and found Four holding you back to the chair as you gasped for air, trying to wrap your head around everything, looking up at Four and holding onto his arms but unable to say anything. Anger wasn't the only thing you felt now, it was also powerlessness, disgust and sorrow, compassion too. You wanted to thank Four and apologize over and over because you felt like you had invaded his privacy on a level you couldn't behind to explain.

\- "I took you in." -he seemed to read your mind- "It's okay, Y/N."

\- "I'm sorry."

\- "Don't." -he helped you down from the chair after disconnecting the machine and taking the cables off your body- "You know what you have to do."

\- "I do."

\- "I'll be right there."

You nodded, squeezing his forearms and looking into his eyes for a second before you walked away, grabbing your jacket and leaving the room. You were going to ace the test and then... then someone wouldn't have enough city to run away from you, no place to hide, no sympathy. You looked back to see Four had followed you to the door, watching you leave, nodding at you before he asked for the next person to go inside. He knew you'd be okay just like he had been, now feeling more connected to you than before; not because you were both Divergent or Dauntless but because he knew he could trust you, he knew you were different. A wonder among dull canvases.


End file.
